Solid state lighting devices with cellular arrays and associated methods of manufacturing

ABSTRACT

Solid state lighting (“SSL”) devices with cellular arrays and associated methods of manufacturing are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a light emitting diode includes a semiconductor material having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface. The semiconductor material has an aperture extending into the semiconductor material from the first surface. The light emitting diode also includes an active region in direct contact with the semiconductor material, and at least a portion of the active region is in the aperture of the semiconductor material.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/612,484filed Sep. 12, 2012, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,709,845, which is a divisionalof U.S. application Ser. No. 12/731,923 filed Mar. 25, 2010, now U.S.Pat. No. 8,390,010, each of which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present technology is directed generally to solid state lighting(“SSL”) devices with cellular arrays and associated methods ofmanufacturing.

BACKGROUND

SSL devices generally use semiconductor light emitting diodes (“LEDs”),organic light-emitting diodes (“OLEDs”), and/or polymer light emittingdiodes (“PLEDs”) as sources of illumination rather than electricalfilaments, a plasma, or a gas. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional diagram of aportion of a conventional indium-gallium nitride (“InGaN”) LED 10. Asshown in FIG. 1, the LED 10 includes a substrate 12 (e.g., siliconcarbide, sapphire, gallium nitride, or silicon), an N-type galliumnitride (“GaN”) material 14, an InGaN/GaN multiple quantum wells(“MQWs”) 16, and a P-type GaN material 18 layered on one another inseries. The LED 10 also includes a first contact 20 on the P-type GaNmaterial 18 and a second contact 22 on the N-type GaN material 14.

According to conventional techniques, the N-type and/or P-type GaNmaterials 14 and 18 are typically formed as planar structures viaepitaxial growth. The planar structures have limited surface areas andthus can limit the number of MQWs formed thereon. As a result, the LED10 may have limited emission power output per unit surface area.Accordingly, several improvements to increase the emission output for aparticular surface area of an LED may be desirable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of an LED in accordancewith the prior art.

FIGS. 2A-2F are schematic perspective views of various crystal planes ina GaN/InGaN material in accordance with embodiments of the technology.

FIGS. 3A-3I are partially cutaway and perspective views of a portion ofa semiconductor device undergoing a process to form an SSL device inaccordance with embodiments of the technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments of SSL devices and associated methods ofmanufacturing are described below. The term “microelectronic substrate”is used throughout to include substrates upon which and/or in which SSLdevices, microelectronic devices, micromechanical devices, data storageelements, read/write components, and other features are fabricated. Aperson skilled in the relevant art will also understand that thetechnology may have additional embodiments, and that the technology maybe practiced without several of the details of the embodiments describedbelow with reference to FIGS. 2A-3I.

In the following discussion, an LED having GaN/InGaN materials is usedas an example of an SSL device in accordance with embodiments of thetechnology. Several embodiments of the SSL device may also include atleast one of gallium arsenide (GaAs), aluminum gallium arsenide(AlGaAs), gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP), aluminum gallium indiumphosphide (AlGaInP), gallium(III) phosphide (GaP), zinc selenide (ZnSe),boron nitride (BN), aluminum nitride (AlN), aluminum gallium nitride(AlGaN), aluminum gallium indium nitride (AlGaInN), and/or othersuitable semiconductor materials.

FIGS. 2A-2F are schematic perspective views of various crystal planes ina portion of a GaN/InGaN material. In FIGS. 2A-2F, Ga (or Ga/In) and Natoms are schematically shown as large and small spheres, respectively.As shown in FIGS. 2A-2F, the GaN/InGaN material has a wurtzite crystalstructure with various lattice planes or facets as represented bycorresponding Miller indices. A discussion of the Miller index can befound in the Handbook of Semiconductor Silicon Technology by William C.O'Mara. For example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the plane denoted as the“c-plane” in the wurtzite crystal structure with a Miller index of(0001) contains only Ga atoms. Similarly, other planes in the wurtzitecrystal structure may contain only N atoms and/or other suitable typesof atoms. In another example, the wurtzite crystal structure alsoincludes crystal planes that are generally perpendicular to the c-plane.FIG. 2B shows a plane denoted as the “a-plane” in the wurtzite crystalstructure with a Miller index of (11 20). FIG. 2C shows another planedenoted as the “m-plane” in the wurtzite crystal structure with a Millerindex of (10 10). In a further example, the wurtzite crystal structurecan also include crystal planes that are canted relative to the c-planewithout being perpendicular thereto. As shown in FIGS. 2D-2F, each ofthe planes with Miller indices of (10 13), (10 11), and (11 22) form anangle with the c-plane shown in FIG. 2A. The angle is greater than 0°but less than 90°. Even though only particular examples of crystalplanes are illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2F, the wurtzite crystal structurecan also include other crystal planes not illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2F.

FIG. 3A is a partially cutaway and perspective view of a portion of asemiconductor device 100 undergoing a process in accordance withembodiments of the technology. As shown in FIG. 3A, an initial stage ofthe process includes forming one or more optional first and secondbuffering materials 104 a and 104 b and a first semiconductor material106 on a microelectronic substrate 102 in series. The microelectronicsubstrate 102 can include a substrate material upon which the first andsecond buffering layers 104 a and 104 b and the first semiconductormaterial 106 can be readily formed. For example, in one embodiment, themicroelectronic substrate 102 includes silicon (Si) with a latticeorientation of {1,1,1}. In other embodiments, the microelectronicsubstrate 102 can include gallium nitride (GaN), aluminum nitride (AlN),and/or other suitable semiconductor materials. In further embodiments,the microelectronic substrate 102 can include diamond, glass, quartz,silicon carbide (SiC), aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃), and/or other suitablecrystalline and/or ceramic materials.

The optional first and second buffer materials 104 a and 104 b mayfacilitate formation of the first semiconductor material 106 on themicroelectronic substrate 102. In certain embodiments, the first andsecond buffer materials 104 a and 104 b can include aluminum nitride(AlN) and aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN), respectively. In otherembodiments, the first and second buffer materials 104 a and 104 b canalso include aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃), zinc nitride (Zn₃N₂), and/or othersuitable buffer materials. In further embodiments, at least one of thefirst and second buffer materials 104 a and 104 b may be omitted.

In the illustrated embodiment, the first semiconductor material 106 caninclude an N-type GaN material formed on the optional second buffermaterial 104 b. The first semiconductor material 106 has a first surface106 a in direct contact with the second buffer material 104 b and asecond surface 106 b opposite the first surface 106 a. In otherembodiments, the first semiconductor material 106 can also include aP-type GaN material and/or other suitable semiconductor materials. Inany of the foregoing embodiments, the first and second buffer materials104 a and 104 b and the first semiconductor material 106 may be formedon the microelectronic substrate 102 via metal organic CVD (“MOCVD”),molecular beam epitaxy (“MBE”), liquid phase epitaxy (“LPE”), hydridevapor phase epitaxy (“HVPE”), and/or other suitable techniques.

As shown in FIG. 3A, another stage of the process can include depositingand patterning a mask material 108 on the first semiconductor material106 to form at least one aperture 110 in the mask material 108. In theillustrated embodiment, the apertures 110 each include generallycylindrical openings extending substantially through the entire depth ofthe mask material 108 and exposing a portion of the second surface 106 bof the first semiconductor material 106. In other embodiments, theapertures 110 may also include openings with hexagonal, pentagonal,oval, rectilinear, square, triangular, and/or other suitable crosssections that extend at least partially into the mask material 108. Infurther embodiments, the apertures 110 may have openings with acombination of different cross sections that extend to different depthsin the mask material 108.

In certain embodiments, the mask material 108 can include a photoresistdeposited on the first semiconductor material 106 via spin coatingand/or other suitable techniques. The deposited photoresist may then bepatterned via photolithography. In other embodiments, the mask material108 may also include silicon oxide (SiO₂), silicon nitride (SiN), and/orother suitable masking materials formed on the first semiconductormaterial 106 via chemical vapor deposition (“CVD”), atomic layerdeposition (“ALD”), and/or other suitable techniques. In suchembodiments, the deposited masking materials may then be patterned witha photoresist (not shown) via photolithography and subsequently etched(e.g., dry etching, wet etching, etc.) to form the apertures 110.

FIGS. 3B and 3C show embodiments of another stage of the process inwhich at least one well 112 is formed in the first semiconductormaterial 106. The wells 112 can individually correspond to the apertures110 (FIG. 3A) in the mask material 108 (FIG. 3A). As shown in FIG. 3B,the wells 112 individually include a generally hexagonal cross sectionwith six sidewalls 114 extending from the second surface 106 b towardthe first surface 106 a of the first semiconductor material 106. Thesidewalls 114 of the individual wells 112 are joined at a generallyplanar base 116 at a depth within the semiconductor material 106intermediate to the first and second surfaces 106 a and 106 b. In otherembodiments, at least one of the wells 112 may include sidewalls 114that extend the entire length between the first and second surfaces 106a and 106 b of the first semiconductor material 106. In furtherembodiments, the base 116 may not be planar, as described in more detailbelow with reference to FIG. 3C.

The wells 112 may be formed via an isotropic, an anisotropic, or acombination of both isotropic and anisotropic etching operations. Forexample, in certain embodiments, forming the wells 112 includesisotropically etching and subsequently anisotropically etching the firstsemiconductor material 106 via the apertures 110 of the mask material108 (FIG. 3A.) The isotropic etching may include contacting the firstsemiconductor material 106 with phosphoric acid (H₃PO₄), sodiumhydroxide (NaOH), potassium hydroxide (KOH), and/or other suitableetchants. The anisotropic etching may include plasma etching, reactiveionic etching, and/or other suitable dry etching techniques. Afterforming the wells 112, the mask material 108 may be removed via wetetching, laser ablation, and/or other suitable techniques.

Without being bound by theory, it is believed that by utilizing wetetching the hexagonal-shaped cross sections of the wells 112 may resultusing the cylindrical apertures 110 in the mask material (FIG. 3A)because phosphoric acid and/or other anisotropic etchants can removematerial at different rates along different crystal planes of the firstsemiconductor material 106 under select etching conditions. For example,it is believed that phosphoric acid and/or other anisotropic etchantscan remove GaN material from c-plane, a-plane, and/or m-plane fasterthan other planes (e.g., those shown in FIGS. 2D-2F) due, at least inpart, to the different bonding energy of gallium (Ga) and/or nitrogen(N) atoms in these planes. As a result, phosphoric acid and/or otheranisotropic etchants can preferentially remove materials from thesecrystal planes to form the hexagonal cross sections of the wells 112.

It is also believed that etching conditions (e.g., etching temperature,etching time, concentration and/or composition of etchant) may beadjusted to achieve different configurations for the sidewalls 114. Forexample, the sidewalls 114 may be formed along the same crystal planes(e.g., m-plane) based on a first set of select etching conditions. Inother examples, the sidewalls 114 may be formed at different crystalplanes based on a second set of select etching conditions. At least someof the sidewalls 114 may be formed at an angle that is slanted comparedto the base 116. In further examples, the sidewalls 114 may convergeinto an apex (not shown) so that the individual wells 112 have aninverted hexagonal pyramid shape based on a third set of select etchingconditions.

Even though the base 116 is shown as generally planar in FIG. 3B, incertain embodiments, the base 116 may be non-planar. For example, asshown in FIG. 3C, in a semiconductor device 100′ in accordance with anembodiment of the present technology, the wells 112 may individuallyinclude a base 116′ with an inverted hexagonal pyramid shape convergingat an apex 118. Techniques for forming the sidewalls 114 and thenon-planar base 116′ can include removing material from the firstsemiconductor material 106 via (1) only isotropic etching, (2)anisotropic etching to expose desired crystal planes for the sidewalls114 and subsequent isotropic etching to form the non-planar base 116′,or (3) other suitable techniques. As shown in FIG. 3D, in asemiconductor device 100″ in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent technology, at least one base 116 is generally planar while theanother base 116′ is non-planar.

FIG. 3E shows another stage of the process in which an active region 120of an LED device is formed in the semiconductor device 100. In thefollowing description, the embodiment of the semiconductor device 100shown in FIG. 3B is used to describe subsequent processing operationsfor illustration purposes. One of ordinary skill in the art willunderstand that the described operations, structures, and/or functionsmay equally apply to the embodiments shown in FIG. 3C and/or otherembodiments of the semiconductor device 100. In the illustratedembodiment, the active region 120 includes InGaN/GaN MQWs. In otherembodiments, the active region 120 may include other suitablesemiconductor materials.

As shown in FIG. 3E, the active region 120 may include a first activeportion 120 a formed on the second surface 106 b of the firstsemiconductor material 106, a second active portion 120 b formed on thesidewalls 114, and a third active portion 120 c on the bases 116 of thewells 112. In certain embodiments, the active region 120 may generallyconform to the second surface 106 b of the first semiconductor material106. As a result, the first, second, and third portions 120 a, 120 b,and 120 c of the active region 120 may have a generally constantthickness (and/or number of MQWs).

In other embodiments, the first, second, and third portions 120 a, 120b, and 120 c of the active region 120 may have different thicknesses byforming the active region 120 at different rates on the differentunderlying surfaces of the first semiconductor material 106. Forexample, the sidewalls 114 of the wells 112 may be selected to form atcrystal planes upon which the active region 120 may readily nucleate.Thus, the second active portion 120 b of the active region 120 may havea thickness that is greater than that of the first active portion 120 aon the second surface 106 b of the first semiconductor material 106and/or the third active portion 120 c on the bases 116 of the wells 112.

In further embodiments, parts of the second active portion 120 b mayhave different thicknesses than other parts of the second active portion120 b. As a result, different parts of the second active portion 120 bmay have different indium (In) incorporation rates. For example, theactive region 120 of two adjacent sidewalls 114 of a particular well 112may have different thicknesses because the adjacent sidewalls 114 havebeen formed on different crystal planes. In other examples, somesidewalls 114 (e.g., two opposing sidewalls) of a particular well 112may have the same thickness while other sidewalls 114 (e.g., twoadjacent sidewalls) of the well 112 may have different thicknesses, andthus different thicknesses of MQWs. It is believed that different indium(In) incorporation and/or different thicknesses of the MQWs caninfluence the wavelengths and/or other optical properties of the MQWs.

Without being bound by theory, it is believed that the emissioncharacteristics of the semiconductor device 100 are related to or atleast influenced by the MQW density in the active region 120.Accordingly, several characteristics of the semiconductor device 100 maybe adjusted to achieve desired emission wavelengths, colors, and/orother emission characteristics of the semiconductor device 100. Forexample, one may increase the pattern density (e.g., by reducing thepitch to about 50 μm to about 500 nm) of the apertures 110 (FIG. 3A) andof corresponding wells 112 to increase the interfacial areas upon whichMQWs of varying optical properties may be formed. In another example,one may also increase the depth and/or aspect ratio of the wells 112(e.g., with an aspect ratio of about 40:1) to increase the interfacialareas of the sidewalls 114. In a further example, one may also adjustthe configuration of the sidewalls 114 (e.g., crystal planes) of theindividual wells 112 such that the active region 120 may form with adesired number and optical properties of MQWs. In yet further examples,one may adjust a combination of at least some of the foregoingcharacteristics and/or other suitable characteristics of thesemiconductor device 100.

FIG. 3F shows another stage of the process in which a secondsemiconductor material 126 is formed on the active region 120. In theillustrated embodiment, the second semiconductor material 126 includes aP-type GaN material. In other embodiments, the second semiconductormaterial 126 may include an N-type GaN material and/or other suitablesemiconductor materials.

As shown in FIG. 3F, the second semiconductor material 126 includesfirst, second, and third semiconductor portions 126 a, 126 b, and 126 cgenerally corresponding to the first, second, and third active portions120 a, 120 b, and 120 c of the active region 120. As a result, thesecond semiconductor material 126 includes a plurality of openings 128individually extending into the wells 112. In other embodiments, thesecond semiconductor material 126 may completely fill the wells 112 tocreate a generally planar surface (not shown) spaced apart from theactive region 120. For any of the foregoing embodiments, techniques forforming the first semiconductor material 106, the active region 120, andthe second semiconductor material 126 can include MOCVD, MBE, LPE,and/or other suitable techniques.

FIG. 3G shows another stage of the process in which an electrodematerial 130, a reflective material 132, and a diffusion barrier 134 areformed on the semiconductor device 100 in series. The electrode material130 substantially fills the wells 112 and has a generally planarelectrode surface 130 a proximate to the reflective material 132. Theelectrode material 130 can include indium tin oxide (ITO),fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO), zinc oxide (ZnO), and/or other suitabletransparent conducting oxides (“TCOs”). The reflective material 132 caninclude silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), and/or other suitable lightreflective materials. The diffusion barrier 134 can include siliconcarbide (SiC), silicon oxide (SiO₂), and/or other suitable insulatingmaterials. Techniques for forming the electrode material 130, thereflective material 132, and the diffusion barrier 134 may include PVD,CVD, ALD, spin coating, and/or other suitable techniques.

FIG. 3H shows another stage of the process in which the microelectronicsubstrate 102 and the optional first and second buffering materials 104a and 104 b are removed from the semiconductor device 100. In FIG. 3H,the semiconductor device 100 is shown inverted related to FIG. 3F forillustrating a suitable processing orientation. Techniques for removingthese materials can include back grinding, wet etching, dry etching,laser ablation, and/or other suitable techniques.

FIG. 3I shows an optional stage of the process in which a plurality oflight extraction features 140 are formed on the first semiconductormaterial 106. In the illustrated embodiment, the light extractionfeatures 140 includes a plurality of hexagonal pyramids formed via wetetching (e.g., with phosphoric acid) the first semiconductor material106. In other embodiments, the light extraction features 140 may includeother suitable structures. In further embodiments, the light extractionfeatures 140 may be omitted.

In operation, the active region 120 may generate emissions when anexcitation voltage is applied via the first and second semiconductormaterials 106 and 126. As shown in FIG. 3H, the first, second, and thirdportions 120 a, 120 b, and 120 c of the active region 120 canindividually generate corresponding first, second, and third emissionportions 150 a, 150 b, and 150 c. As a result, several embodiments ofthe semiconductor device 100 can generate more emissions (e.g., from thesecond portion 120 b of the active region 120) when compared to othersplanar LEDs, which can only emit from planar portions corresponding tothe first and third portions 120 a and 120 c of the active region 120.

Without being bound by theory, it is believed that embodiments of thefirst and second semiconductor materials 106 and 126 may form opticalguides for light generated by the active region 120 during operation. Itis believed that the differences in refractive indices between the firstand second semiconductor materials 106 and 126 and the active region 120may reduce the amount of internal reflection in the wells 112. As aresult, the first and second semiconductor materials 106 and 126 may“guide” an increased amount of light generated by the active region 120to outwardly toward an illumination target.

Several embodiments of the semiconductor device 100 may increase theemission power per unit area over conventional LEDs. As shown in FIG. 1,conventional LEDs typically include planar N-type and/or P-type GaNmaterials 14 and 18. Such planar structures have limited interface areaand thus can limit the number of quantum wells formed thereon to afootprint area of W×L (FIG. 3H). As a result, the emission output fromthe conventional LEDs may be limited. By forming three-dimensional wells112 (FIG. 3B) in the first semiconductor material 106, the interfacialarea for forming the active region 120 can be increased as described inthe following formula:ΔA=P×D×ρwhere ΔA is the increase in interfacial area; P is perimeter of wells112 (FIG. 3B); D (FIG. 3H) is depth of the wells 112; ρ is number ofwells 112 in the footprint W×L (FIG. 3H). As a result, severalembodiments of the semiconductor device 100 have higher MQW density perunit footprint area of the semiconductor device 100 than conventionalLEDs to enable a higher emission power output.

Even though the wells 112 are shown in FIGS. 3B-3I as having hexagonalcross sections, in other embodiments, the wells 112 may also havepentagonal, circular, oval, rectilinear, square, triangular, and/orother suitable cross sections that are formed via dry etching and/orother suitable techniques. In further embodiments, the wells 112 mayindividually have a combination of cross sectional shapes that areformed via, e.g., multiple dry etching operations. In yet furtherembodiments, at least some of the wells 112 may have different geometricand/or other characteristics different from other wells 112.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments ofthe technology have been described herein for purposes of illustration,but that various modifications may be made without deviating from thedisclosure. Many of the elements of one embodiment may be combined withother embodiments in addition to or in lieu of the elements of the otherembodiments. Accordingly, the disclosure is not limited except as by theappended claims.

We claim:
 1. A light emitting diode, comprising: a GaN material having afirst surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the GaNmaterial carrying an array of wells, wherein individual wells of thearray have an opening at least proximate to the first surface, a baseproximate to the second surface, and a sidewall between the opening andthe base, the individual wells extend at least partially into the GaNmaterial toward the second surface, at least one of the bases isgenerally planar, and at least one of the bases is non-planar; and anactive region in direct contact with the GaN material, wherein at leasta portion of the active region is in the array of wells.
 2. The lightemitting diode of claim 1 wherein the individual wells have a hexagonalcross section with six sidewalls extending into the GaN material, thesix sidewalls being joined at a corresponding one of the bases at adepth intermediate to the first and second surfaces.
 3. The lightemitting diode of claim 2 wherein the six sidewalls are located atdifferent respective crystal planes of the GaN material.
 4. The lightemitting diode of claim 1 wherein the GaN material is an N-type GaNmaterial.
 5. The light emitting diode of claim 4, further comprising: aP-type GaN material in direct contact with the active region; and anelectrode material in direct contact with the P-type GaN material, theelectrode material substantially filling the array of wells.
 6. Thelight emitting diode of claim 5, further comprising a reflectivematerial on the electrode material.
 7. The light emitting diode of claim6, further comprising a diffusion barrier on the reflective material. 8.The light emitting diode of claim 1 wherein at least one of thenon-planar bases has a non-planar inverted hexagonal pyramid shape. 9.The light emitting diode of claim 1 wherein the sidewalls are atrespective wet-etched surfaces of the GaN material.
 10. The lightemitting diode of claim 9 wherein the generally planar bases are atrespective dry-etched surfaces of the GaN material.
 11. The lightemitting diode of claim 9 wherein the non-planar bases are at additionalrespective wet-etched surfaces of the GaN material.
 12. The lightemitting diode of claim 1 wherein the sidewalls are at respectiveisotropically etched surfaces of the GaN material.
 13. The lightemitting diode of claim 12 wherein the generally planar bases are atrespective anisotropically etched surfaces of the GaN material.
 14. Thelight emitting diode of claim 12 wherein the non-planar bases are atadditional respective isotropically etched surfaces of the GaN material.